By IANS,
New Delhi : After having been caught on the wrong foot with Varun Gandhi’s alleged hate speech, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has complained to the Election Commission that Imran Kidwai, the chief of Congress’ national minority cell, made “inflammatory religious statements”.
The BJP Thursday in a letter to the Election Commission said Kidwai “made a host of communal statements, appealing to the communal feelings of the gathering so as to secure the votes of the Muslim community in favour of the Indian National Congress.”
BJP’s national spokesperson Balbir Punj said: “Kidwai went to the extent of saying that he regretted not being a Mufti which would have enabled him to issue just one fatwa to Muslims not to go with the BJP, for going with the BJP would amount to committing ‘kufr’ (Kufr is being defined as that which covers the truth, infidelity, blasphemy, disbelieving in the Quran or in any tenets of the Muslim religion. A person practicing Kufr is a Kafir).”
“The statements by such a senior Congress party functionary seeking votes in the name of religion and making statements that endanger communal harmony between different communities is a clear and blatant violation of the election laws and code of conduct,” Punj added.
The BJP also issued a statement that the public function was held adjacent to the Jama Masjid in Chandigarh, which in also a clear violation of the model code of conduct.
The BJP said that it had also submitted a copy of the CD containing the video recording of Kidwai’s speech.
In its letter, the BJP has asked the Election Commission to initiate action against Kidwai and other Congress dignitaries present at the meeting and the Congress party.
“It is requested that an FIR (first information report) be filed against Kidwai and others involved,” the letter read.